The Palatka daily news. (Palatka, Fla.) 1884-1888, 1887-06-07
WASHINGTON.
The National Drill a Losing Affair Meet
rngs-The Sunday Law.
C,nrrss1AouasHfS of The F,aI1fEH NflES.

The National Drill a Losing Affair Meet
rngs-The Sunday Law.
| Correspondence Of tho Pdldfkd Netcs.
WASHINGTON, June 4.
The National Drill has closed, and was
| carried on on such a grand scale that
the managers have to make up purse
| of SIC, 900 to meet the deficit Unfortu-
| nately we had rain every afternoon of
the drill after the first day until the
close of the week, so that thousands of
persons We're kept away. The rain also
so interfered for three nights with the
pyrotechnic arrangements that thou
sands of dollars were lost. As military
display the drill was a grand success and
and every visiting company left for
home delighted with its treatment and
determined to come again if the drill be
repeated.
Several of the companies were SO
charmed with the beauties of the city
that they remained until nearly the end
of the week after the drill closed ON
Monday. The Minnesota company that
won the second infantry prize We're the
guests of the National Rifles, of this
place, after the close of the drill, and on
Thursday We're taken to Mt. Vernon and
treated to a Potomac plank shad bake,
which is an epicurean feast purely local
to this section of the country. The de
licious Potomac shad were taken directly
from the river, split in two, and pinned
to an immense oak or chestnut plank
I'll, Il,
face to face by a wooden fire built in
front of it. The heat of the blazing fire
on one side and the hot plank on the
other side to which the shad is pinned
soon broils the shad through and
through and imparts to it a most de-
licious flavor not to be attained in any
other way and so far beyond all COM
parison that you must partake of the
feast to form any conception of the deli
cate flavor. Champagne is the usual
beverage that goes with plank shad, and
it always flows freely on such occasions.
The American Fisheries Society, the
American Genealogical Society, the
American Physicians Society, and Me
chanical Engineers Societies. have all
held conventions in our city this week.
They found the city so attractive just
now in its spring dress that the sessions
have mostly been held at night as to
give the members AN opportunity to see
the beauties of art and nature by day
| light. The President of the Mechanical
Engineers Society, Geo. III. Babcock, of
New York. said in his opening address
| that the American people We're hardly
aware of the beautiful Metropolis which
the Capital City had become, and said
that the magnificence of the buildings
and cleanly and beautiful stretch of
avenues and streets Were only egualed by
the warm hospitality of the people.
The Fisheries Commission has been
somewhat saddened by the sudden i'll
ness of Professor Baird, of the Smith
sonian Institute. the father of fish cul-
ture in this country. The fact that so
many prominent public men have died
after brief illness within the past month
has caused much alarm concerning the
Professors illness, but his physicians
pronounce him now out of danger. The
affection is of the kidneys.
During the Presidents absence in the
woods of New York State the Executive
Mansion is being overhauled, and when
he gets back it will have been trans
formed from its gorgeous winter dress
INTO its light and cool costume of the
summer. 1t is not expected that the
President will leave the city again until
fall, and he and Mrs. Cleveland will take
up their abode at Oak View for the sum-
mer.
Now that the enforcement of the Sun
day law is being tested in the courts.
the people. through the newspapers, are
making loud calls for open air concerts
and free access to the Government build
ings and libraries on Sunday. The EN-
ployes in the buildings are doing all
they can to defeat the new departure,
Sunday is the only day in seven that
they have to themselves, and they have
protested against being made to work on
Sunday.
There is no appropriation out of
| which an extra force to duty on Sunday
can be paid and So there seems to he no
| probability that the buildings viii be
| opened ON that day. III.